Particle Physics Outreach

At Oxford Particle Physics we are committed to sharing our enthusiasm for fundamental research into the building blocks of the universe with everyone. We run a range of events for schools and the general public.

We run a Particle Physics Masterclass, as part of a programme run by the International Particle Physics Outreach Group, giving school students the chance to experience first-hand what it is like to work as a particle physicist for a day, analysing data from the Large Hadron Collider and discussing it with researchers at CERN via a video link.

We developed the ATLAScraft project with students from local schools to build and explore the ATLAS detector in the Minecraft computer game. At a kickoff meeting for this project, a group of students from Abingdon had a virtual visit to the ATLAS detector.

Our art competition has produced a collection of impressive works now displayed in the corridors of the Denys Wilkinson building.

Oxford particle physicists have developed interactive apps Collider, VENu, and LHSee, to allow anyone to view data from some of our experiments on their smart phones. We also started the Higgs Hunters project where online citizen scientists search through the data from the LHC looking for signs of new particles.

Accelerate! is an exciting live action show run by the accelerator physics team at the John Adams Institute.

The Oxford May Music festival, combining science talks with world class music performances, was started by Oxford particle physicist Brian Foster.

We also offer a small number of work experience placements each year, organised through the departmental scheme.

For details of further outreach organised by Oxford Physics, including work experience placements, and how to sign up to our mailing list, see: Oxford Physics Outreach.